WHAT YOU KNEW IN THE LIGHT, DON’T DOUBT IN THE DARK
8/18/21 WHAT YOU KNEW IN THE LIGHT, DON’T DOUBT IN THE DARK
Last night I pondered John the Baptist. He was raised to be set apart unto God. Both his parents were of priestly decent. His father had a supernatural visitation in the temple regarding John’s birth and calling.
Luke 1:13-17 But the angel said unto him, Fear not, Zachariah: for your prayer is heard; and your wife Elizabeth shall bear you a son, and you shall call his name John. 14 And you shall have joy and gladness; and many shall rejoice at his birth. 15 For he shall be great in the sight of the Lord, and shall drink neither wine nor strong drink; and he shall be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother’s womb. 16 And many of the children of Israel shall he turn to the Lord their God. 17 And he shall go before him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just; to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.
John was born 6 months before Jesus and their mothers were cousins. Their mothers both received visitations from Gabriel about their births, and they spent time together during their pregnancies. It is to be expected that both boys spent time together growing up, also knowing they were called apart and separated unto God for His purpose.
Luke 1:35-41 And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Spirit shall come upon you, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow you: therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of you shall be called the Son of God. 36 And, behold, your cousin Elizabeth, she has also conceived a son in her old age: and this is the sixth month with her, who was called barren. 37 For with God nothing shall be impossible. 38 And Mary said, Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to your word. And the angel departed from her. 39 And Mary arose in those days, and went into the hill country with haste, into a city of Judah; 40 And entered into the house of Zachariah, and greeted Elizabeth. 41 And it came to pass, that, when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, the babe leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit:
John the Baptist was raised a Nazarite to be set apart for the Lord. Nazarites were recognized with shaggy heads and beards. They were separated and set apart from societies norms like drinking alcohol. As an adult life he lived in the wilderness with rough clothing and strict diet. He was away from men, trusting God and following Him. He was away from the distractions and influence of men and learned the voice of God.
Deuteronomy 8:16 Who fed you in the wilderness with manna, which your fathers knew not, that he might humble you, and that he might test you, to do you good in the end;
John’s ministry was in the wilderness. He was the voice that prepared the way for Jesus’ ministry. John knew he was preparing the way for the Lord to come. He thoroughly understood that. And people came to him to be baptized.
John 1:22-27 Then said they unto him, Who are you? that we may give an answer to them that sent us. What say you of yourself? 23 He said, I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness, Make straight the way of the Lord, as said the prophet Isaiah. 24 And they who were sent were of the Pharisees. 25 And they asked him, and said unto him, Why baptize you then, if you are not that Christ, nor Elijah, neither that prophet? 26 John answered them, saying, I baptize with water: but there stands one among you, whom you know not; 27 He it is, who coming after me is preferred before me, whose shoe’s thong I am not worthy to unloose.
When John was baptizing people he had a visionary experience when he saw Jesus coming to him. Prior to this, he had heard God talk to him about the time when he would see the Spirit descend upon Him, He is the One. Surely he knew Jesus as his cousin, and probably even knowing Jesus had a supernatural call upon His life. But the full truth was obviously hidden from him until he received this vision. To suddenly realize it was his cousin Jesus must have amazed him. The promise spoken to John came to pass when John saw the Holy Spirit descend like a dove upon Jesus and rest there. JOHN KNEW. Having been fully prepared for that kyros moment, John boldly declared, “Behold the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world.”
John 1 29-24 AMP The next day John saw Jesus coming to him and said, Look! There is the Lamb of God, Who takes away the sin of the world! [Exo_12:3; Isa_53:7] This is He of Whom I said, After me comes a Man Who has priority over me [Who takes rank above me] because He was before me and existed before I did. And I did not know Him and did not recognize Him [myself]; but it is in order that He should be made manifest and be revealed to Israel [be brought out where we can see Him] that I came baptizing in (with) water. John gave further evidence, saying, I have seen the Spirit descending as a dove out of heaven, and it dwelt on Him [never to depart]. And I did not know Him nor recognize Him, but He Who sent me to baptize in (with) water said to me, Upon Him Whom you shall see the Spirit descend and remain, that One is He Who baptizes with the Holy Spirit. And I have seen [that happen–I actually did see it] and my testimony is that this is the Son of God!
It was ordained by God that John’s ministry would begin to decline as Jesus’ ministry began to increase.
John 3:30 He must increase, but I must decrease.
John was finally put into prison for his stand against Herod’s adultery. It was there in prison, having been cut off from the anointing flow of his ministry, away from all he had known up until then, that he began to doubt. After having been filled with the Holy Spirit since birth, and being set aside for God’s work, John was having his dark night of the soul.
Matthew 11:1-6 And it came to pass, when Jesus had made an end of commanding his twelve disciples, he departed from there to teach and to preach in their cities. 2 Now when John had heard in the prison the works of Christ, he sent two of his disciples, 3 And said unto him,Are you he that should come, or do we look for another? 4 Jesus answered and said unto them, Go and show John again those things which you do hear and see: 5 The blind receive their sight, and the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, and the poor have the gospel preached to them. 6 And blessed is he, whosoever shall not be offended in me.
John had been prepared to know Who the Son of God was. He was prepared to declare Who He was and be a confirming witness to Jesus’ ministry. He did not fail God. He received God’s promise, believed Him and walked it out. Yet in that dark and dingy prison, having been cut off from all connection, he was left alone to doubt.
As I pondered these things, I thought of the phrase, Do not doubt in the dark, what you have known in the light. Remember Jesus had his time of being tempted of the devil as well. Right after Jesus was baptized and received confirmation from John and also His heavenly Father, He was driven by the Spirit to be tested by the devil. (Matt 4, Mark 1, Luke 4)
Mark 1:9-13 And it came to pass in those days, that Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee, and was baptized by John in the Jordan. 10 And immediately coming up out of the water, he saw the heavens opened, and the Spirit like a dove descending upon him: 11 And there came a voice from heaven, saying, You are my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. 12 And immediately the Spirit drove him into the wilderness. 13 And he was there in the wilderness forty days, tempted of Satan; and was with the wild beasts; and the angels ministered unto him.
Matthew 4:1 Then was Jesus led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.
The devil began,IF you are the Son of God… Jesus didn’t stand on His own merit, try to prove Himself or even defend what had just taken place with John and the Father’s confirmations. Jesus knew this was not a contest between Who He was and who the devil was. Instead Jesus laid his flesh and self defense low and was obedient to the Word of God. Jesus overcame each of the devil’s testings by saying “It is written.” Jesus quoted what He knew to be true, God’s Word.
This morning I took my morning walk about 3 hours later than usual because it is much cooler today. I usually take it right after the sun rises at 6 AM. So this morning I was thanking Him for such a nice day and I suddenly noticed the SHADOWS. Because the sun was much higher in the sky, the shadows were really distinct on the bushes, trees, street, fences, etc. I told Him how much I enjoyed the shadows because they provide such a nice contrast for the light. I thought of Peter’s shadow and how people were even healed from his shadow. I specifically thanked Him for shadows!
As a prophetic generation we experience visions & dreams, hearing God’s voice and the many ways He speaks. We may even flow in miracles, signs and wonders. God indeed leads us by His Spirit, just as He did John the Baptist. And just like John there will be times when we are led to pass through shadows. Shadows are the absence of light.
Shadows have a way of reminding of us of the times when we were IN the light. They provide a good contrast between what is obviously God and what is not. When we walk through shadows, we have a chance to hear what is in our hearts. Our thoughts start wandering, going all over the place and if we stand in that shadow too long, we nurture those thoughts until they become DOUBT. Shadows give us the chance to choose what we believe.
Shadows are hopefully brief moments when we are cut off from the direct light and given a choice. We must choose to press THROUGH them, and not linger there nor quit there!
- We choose to walk in the light even as He is the Light.
- We choose the Word of God and stand on that.
- We choose the Words of God spoken personally to us.
- Finally we press through to His light and those doubts will flee.
Beyond a shadow of doubt… we KNOW that our God is a GOOD GOD Who gives us good gits, full of life and light and color. We must always choose to not doubt in the dark, what we have known in the light.
James 1:17 Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning.
WORD TO PONDER: WALKING PAST THE SHADOWS 8/18/21
Dear one, whenever you are challenged by the enemy, whether it be your identity in Me, your faith in my Word, or what you believe, always remember your victory is in Me. Your victory is in who I say you are. You are victorious through My assurances to you and you choice to believe My Words.
It is not My intention to leave you in the valley of the shadows. It is My intention to walk with you as you walk through those shadowed times. I have ordained and prepared you, that you would not fear evil. For you have learned that I AM Your Shepherd. I AM your Source of comfort. My goodness goes before you, that you will abide with Me all the days of your life.
When you are among the shadows, remember to focus on what’s behind the cloud. It’s Me dear one. It’s My smiling face looking down upon you, penetrating you with My tender gaze. My compassion does not fail. I understand your struggles and urge you to keep moving forward past the shadows and into My light. The clouds will leave and My sun shall shine with My rainbow in the distance, beckoning you to come into the fullness of all I have said to you. For you will surely know My promises and My Word as your own.
Psalm 23:1-6 The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. 2 He makes me to lie down in green pastures: he leads me beside the still waters. 3 He restores my soul: he leads me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake. 4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for you are with me; your rod and your staff they comfort me. 5 You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies: you anoint my head with oil; my cup runs over. 6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever.
